Israel quietly lifts block on night flights at Syria's airports

Syria's Damascus and Aleppo international airports are now open for nighttime flights after Israel quietly lifted its block on the activation of essential navigation equipment, regional officials have told Middle East Eye.

The Syrian General Authority for Civil Aviation and Transport announced on Thursday that it had completed the installation of air navigation systems, including ILS/DME and DVOR/DME, which enable passenger aircraft to land at night and in reduced visibility, including fog and severe weather.

However, regional diplomats told MEE that activating the equipment required calibration flights and tests within a 50km radius of Damascus airport, which the Israeli government had blocked.

“The Israeli government basically said that they would shoot down the small airplanes doing the calibration flight,” one senior regional official told MEE.

While the pre-2024 Israeli border was about 60km from Damascus, Israeli forces subsequently occupied Mount Hermon and expanded their area of control, bringing them within 25–40km of the Syrian capital.

The official said the equipment had been in place for more than six months, but Syrian authorities had been unable to activate it because of the Israeli ultimatum.

“The Americans wanted the Syrian government to resolve this issue through bilateral talks,” a second regional official said.

A solution emerged when technicians determined that the calibration flights could be conducted within a 25km radius rather than 50km.

Syrian authorities notified Israel that they would conduct the tests, and the Israeli government did not respond, the second official added.

Israel earlier this year also opposed the deployment of an advanced radar system at Damascus International Airport, describing it as  "a move that could limit Israel’s freedom of action in Syrian airspace".

The installation, the HTRS-100 air traffic control radar system, was produced by the Turkish defense company ASELSAN, which has been used for civilian purposes.

Regional diplomats believe Israel may have been seeking to ease tensions following its strike last month on a Syrian airbase close to Turkey. The strike angered US officials, who feared an accidental clash between Israel and Turkey.

Since then, US envoy Tom Barrack has sought to establish a trilateral deconfliction mechanism.

Following those efforts, Israel appointed a charge d’affaires to its embassy in Ankara. He informed his Turkish counterparts that, although he would remain based in Israel for security reasons, he would travel frequently to Turkey to engage with officials.